BRAToSPHERE

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  • The Journey Home – Book Review

    I am a frequent visitor to the ISKCON temple in Juhu, Mumbai and I love the vibes in the air in the temple premises. I love the simplicity in the affairs of the temple, and at the same time, the quest to achieve the inner most peace of the body and the mind.

    I must have read most of the books available in the book store attached to the temple, and insist to all to compulsorily read “BHAGWAD GITA.. As it is”. With this lineage, I was very excited to lay my hands on “The Journey Home”.

    photo Journey-Home-Book_Radhanath_Swami2_zpsc89a775c.jpgThis book is the transformation of the nineteen year old, Richard Slavin to Radhanath Swami. Like most of the teenagers of that time, Richard was immersed in the hippy counter culture and started off on a quest to find himself.

    He takes off to the most exotic locations in Europe with a bunch of friends, hitchhiking through Amsterdam, Florence, Rome, and all of this with literally no money. During this journey, a vision directs him towards India, which he reaches via Cholera infected Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan over a journey more than six months.

    In India, Richard describes his brushes with various spiritual personalities he encountered, and his genuine curiosity to learn the secrets of a fulfilling life from them. His troubles evoke empathy many a times, and his little triumphs make you feel warm and happy.

    The mentions of the internal conflicts faced by him, and the inner voice communicating to him in all his dilemmas are all detailed out in detailed manner. It makes the reader feel that you are actually present there as a silent spectator watching the adventurous journey the author goes through.

    The experience that he has with baba Ram Dass and Neem Karoli Baba (Who I had earlier heard of in Steve Jobs autobiography), explain a lot of dilemmas faced by him, and the internal battles he was going through.

    After all the interesting interactions with himself and varies personalities in terms of teachers, social workers, cult leaders, Richard found his calling in Bhakti Yoga, and a guru in his holiness Srila Prabhupada of ISKCON.

    Overall, anyone, with even a faint interest in Spirituality should compulsorily read this book. It is a heavy book, and I suggest pacing it out over a month to grasp the maximum out of it.

    This journey needs to be made into a movie to spread the message, and to bring out the confusion all of us face when it comes to spirituality.

    Disclaimer: This book was sent to me for a review.

  • Manjunath.. Idiot tha Saala

    This weekend, most of us will undoubtedly watch the IIMA Romantic comedy – “2 states”, and yes, we should.

    It does seem to be well made, and the story by Chetan Bhagat was quite fun. It is probably the first romance set up in an IIM to be made into a Movie! No second thoughts about it, it would in all probability be very well worth the time spent.

    Three weeks from now, there is one more IIM story that would hit the theaters – “Manjunath. Idiot tha Saala”

    How many of us would see this one?

    “Manjunath.. Idiot tha Saala” is the real story of Manjunath Shanmugam, an alumnus of IIM Lucknow batch of 2003. He was posted as a Sales Officer in Bharat Oil, Lakhimpur Kheri, UP. On a chilly November day in 2005, he was shot dead for daring to raise his voice against the system and it’s corruption.

    Following the murder, there was immense media spotlight on the case. Manjunath’s batchmates from IIM Lucknow (where he was affectionately called Machan) also kept the story alive. The incident inspired several students at IIM, IIT and other educational institutes culminating with the IIM students setting up the The Manjunath Shanmugam Trust.

    Sandeep, an advertising guy, has made this film as his directorial debut. He says, “Anjali Mullathi, the main person behind the Manjunath trust, is the motivation behind this film.”

    According to the director, “The only reason for making the movie is that it should be done, and it is the right thing to do. Manjunath had been threatened and warned many times for taking stand against the corrupt. He obviously knew what he was getting into, and in spite of that he, chose the path, not because he was stupid but because he knew that it was right.”

    It took a lot of hard work and emotional turmoil to make this movie, with the director himself having put all his resources behind it. Lack of financiers at the beginning of the project did put a big strain on Sandeep’s finances, who is married and has a daughter. (source: news)

    Of course, the movie does not have big stars backing it, but it is one film made with all heart and honesty. It is the culmination of the efforts put in by the alumni of IIML, and countless other people who toiled hard to bring the perpetrators to justice.

    This is one story that we should ensure gets maximum eye balls, to know how an innocent fun loving guy is trampled to allow illicit gains at the expense of the public at large. Through the lens of Manjunath, it shows the dark underbelly of the nexus between different powers to be, and how it is all collectively destroying the fabric of the country. Why young people entering into the workforce would be forced to become corrupt!

    Are we looking at a future mired with corruption and sub-standard way of life? So, who is coming along on 9th may?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nPY6O8XDv8

    (Viacom18 motion pictures is releasing the movie across on 9th may 2014)

  • catching up in 2011

    In spite of the many promises, I have still not kept my date with you and am really sorry for that. My apologies.

    The first month of the new decade has been quite interesting, tedious, happening and to say the least quite engaging. I have been out of Bangalore for more than half of the month, and thus was not able to reply and post online in the normal frequency.

    Right now, am posting this from the train, on my way back to Bangalore. And here as I travel, and write, my next trip is being planned again, after 10 days. The itinerary is being planned, as messaged. Well, this is life, and not that am complaining.

    Train journeys have always intrigues me, and to get a real insight into the real india, I prefer travelling by sleeper class. This is where the real india, the rural india travels. This is where I get to meet the mango people – the aam junta of our country. This is where I get to see the behavior of the future of the country, the majority of the country.

    But today, on my return journey back to Bangalore, I am in the ac compartment due to ticket availability issues. Nevertheless, no train journey in india can be without its own set of stories. Its own set of people. This train comes all the way from patna ( bihar) to bangalore, and this only makes it more interesting.

    By the way, if the sleeper class gives an insight into the real Indian, the ac compartment delves on the slightly upper SEC, and well better looking women. Though, I generally am not lucky in this regard, of having the solemn company of good looking women while travelling, inspite of the frequent traveler status that I would soon would be conferred, today was different.

    My whole berth, is occupied by people of the opposite sex. Most of them engineering college girls, one from VIT, 2 friends from some engineering college in Tumkur, one from a small town in bihar coming here to see her sister and 3 more from an engineering college in Bangalore.

    It is quite insightful to see the very apparent difference in the different girls, purely based on their backgrounds, and their present occupations, the present place of stay and the likes. This calls for a complete post, and would do it soon.

    Till then, am off, to get some more insights on this wonderful mix of women. Beep! Beep! My phone rings on an incoming sms. I am totally loving it.

  • Article in BusinessWorld Magazine

    Writing has been a passion since long, and I remember writing right since I was in the 1st standard. Yes, I wrote my first ever story when I was in the first standard. I had drawn a picture on my notebook with the new set of crayons. The bedsheet was more coloured than the paper, and obviously mom was furious. I told her what the picture meant, and how the bedsheet played a vital part in the overall scheme of the story. I was saved from a sound thrashing. So, that people, was my first ever story.  Though, Mom tells me that it was just to cover up the bedsheet mess, and we have ever since agreed to disagree on the same.

    And in this pursuit of convincing my mom that I actually enjoy writing, I picked up writing. I started off by writing the examinations, and then graduated to writing diary.( A habit which has stuck from the past 10 years!).

    In this writing career (really?), spanning several years, there have been several times that I have been published. Don’t believe me? I should show you my school section magazines, I was published twice there in three years.

    I also vividly remember the instance when I was baby sitting one of my cousin’s son. This was sometime during my tenth standard. The little brat ( he now follows my blog! Can’t name him), was not allowing me play my new video game in peace, and I had to shut him up. I told him a story. A story with lots of strange creatures called BOO. I could not use devils, as my cousin would not really like me scaring his kid, and harry potter mania had still not caught on. After the story, the kid was so psyched out, and till date is afraid of me, when I utter the B word. My first tryst with influencing people with my stories.

    I had written a couple of times to gokulam, I also wanted to write for tinkle but did not know how to cartoon, and by the time I realized that we just need to send the story I was reading playboy. Gradually, I started writing for rediff, contributed to jam Mag, was involved with the college magazine, and realizing that I just want to write without others approving it, I started blogging.

    I am still waiting for the writing to be made on the brick on the wall.

    Now here, I would want you all to read, not one of my stories, but an article I had written sometime back for Business world. This is about life at IIML, and in B-Schools in general, and my stay there. Hope it helps the aspirants to be better equipped.

    Pfa the scanned copy of the article.(right click and save the image on your computer harddisk, or atleast the temporary cache,  to zoom it. Technically challenged.)

    The article has been published in BUSINESSWORLD – THE ULTIMATE B-SCHOOL GUIDE.

    (Note: alternatively, you can download the article from here)

  • Why are we like this?

    Let us accept it. We stay in a very Hippocratic society. No matter how much we show off as accepting the new norms of living, and acting cool to be comfortable with western “fads” like live-in relationships, inter caste marriages, etc.. we do not accept it. Period. We are like that only.

    The present generation might think we are all cool about it, but question yourself ( and here I am talking to those in their twenties, and facing this), how many of you would actually not turn out to be like your uncles, who Is considered to be the biggest villain in your life right now.

    A typical setting in an Indian Sindhi family, and a big joint family, where the parents would plead their daughter that they are comfortable with her relationship with that Bengali guy, but..

    Mom: “Beta, we are very progressive, and we totally accept your relationship and your feeling for that Roy guy”

    The daughter is happy listening to this, very well knowing that this cannot be all this easy.

    “But..”, the mom starts after a brief pause.

    “Think about what your mama would think about us. Know what, yesterday, the bagal wali auntie was asking me about you and why you not getting married”

    “They would blame us directly that we could not raise you well, and we gave you too much freedom and thus failed as parents”

    The emotional monologue would continue for long, till you (the girl) get persuaded that you are the villain, and would be a black mark on the family. So, please avoid this situation. Point black. In much more many words.

    ‘Virginity is believed to be directly proportional to ones character’. This is how most of the soon-to-be-bestowed-upon-UID card holders treat it to be. And here comes the biggest component of the so called hypocrisy so very rampant in our country. On one side we have the women, who would like to protect “it” for their own prince charming, and on the other hand we have the males with their wild hormones who just can’t wait to get rid of this inferior looking V tag. The irony (or the so called hypocrisy) here is that these very men would want a bride with her hymen intact!

    This makes me wonder why even in the 21st century there is so much hypocrisy and double standards surrounding ‘physical intimacy’. After all, what does virginity have to do with character? Why can’t we just take physical intimacy the way it is – Physical intimacy and nothing more.

    And well, here the so called progressive Indians of tomorrow (the twenty something’s of today) are also to be blamed.

    This double standard is so ingrained in our brains, and was perfectly depicted in the situation that happened last Saturday night. I was on some association function, and was fully decked and dressed to attend this do. I was there on behalf of my uncle, who could not make it. It was attended by the entire association of the south india, so had to be in the best most-eligible-bachelor looks, on instructions from my Mom. “wear a suit. you look very good in it. There would be a lot of sindhi families coming over!”

    After the late night meet, I went ahead to meet a friend ( a girl), to make up for my absence all day. We were talking on the road, and walking in the street where she stays. After some time, the girl comes closer to my ear, and utters, “Don’t look back so obviously, but see the guy on the first floor in the third building on the right behind me?”

    “No”, I say non-chalantly.

    “Arrey, don’t look so obviously. There is a guy, who is trying to hide behind the towel hanging in the balcony and staring at us curiously”

    “Why? You know him?”, I again ask as if it was the most obvious question in the world.

    “Arrey, he is watching assuming something would happen. It is 2 in the night!”

    OKAY. So that is the reason, you cheap pervert there behind the towel. Can a guy and a girl not be just good friends, who happen to meeting at 2 in the night. And if something was bound to happen, I would not be standing here on the street. Speaks a lot about US Indians. The twenty something Indian, the future of the country.

    Needless to say, just to entice the behind-the-towel guy more, I did want to pose something (like this picture) and create an illusion allowing him to fulfill his high( I don’t know Why?), but alas, my friend preferred getting back to her place, and I had to go.